New lessons for ICCI after Ivan - Dr Cummings

Dr Elsa Cummings, President of ICCI

Students during an evening class at the refurbished
ICCI campus in Newlands

Anne Villanueva, Business Instructor

The newly renovated buildings on the International
College of the Cayman Islands campus at Newlands

Friday,  January 20, 2006

COLLEGE level education in Cayman is expected to develop further as the International College of the Cayman Islands (ICCI) returns to its Newlands campus with plans to revamp its curriculum. 

The ICCI was a casualty of Hurricane Ivan that ravaged Grand Cayman in September 2004, leaving its three main buildings in ruin until late last year when renovation work began. 

On Saturday, 4 February 2006, the ICCI will officially reopen its refurbished campus at a cost of $750,000. 

Classes on the site restarted this month after 14 months of sharing facilities with the St Ignatius High School in George Town. 

Over 100 students are attending the sessions, about half its pre-Ivan population, the college said. 

President of the ICCI, Dr Elsa Cummings, said the comeback signals a new beginning for the 35-year-old institution, which is located in the Savannah community. 

“Our immediate plans are to finish renovating our facilities and then hopefully to get started on a new building. In terms of coming back to the campus it’s like a new beginning,” she said.

The ICCI has plans to construct a new multipurpose building to expand its library service and replace its FM radio station that was part of its communications course. 

Trustee and former student Carlisle McLaughlin and his wife, Martha, have committed $250,000 to the development of the college over the next five years, the official disclosed. 

The first disbursement has already been lodged and will go towards the construction of the third building on campus. 

Dr Cummings said that a curriculum review is a priority area for her administration. 

“It’s an opportunity to review our curriculum and make sure they are up to date. Otherwise you stay behind, so it’s a great opportunity to restart the ICCI,” she said. 

“We need to revamp some courses but I can’t say right now. The faculty and the students’ input are critical here. But Information Technology has to play an important role.”

The college head also plans to rebuild the staffing levels, which took a hit in the storm. 

“We had a small number of full-time faculty members and we’re trying to rebuild that, because it’s of immediate concern to make sure we have some additional full-time faculty members,” she said.

According to her, the full-time faculty will grow to five members; however, the heavy reliance will be on adjunct lecturers.

“This is an advantage and this is a trend which is increasing in the US. They have become more important – they teach on their day-to-day experience,” she said.

Dr Cummings said the adjunct faculty played a crucial role in keeping the ICCI operational in the aftermath of the hurricane. 

“The adjunct faculty members have been superb; without them we could not have held the four-quarter classes,” she said. 

The college offers mainly finance and business courses at the Associate, Bachelors’ and Masters’ levels with Accounting and Finance among the most popular specialisations. 

The institution wants to include more short-term courses and an option for students to accelerate their studies to complete the Associate’s Degree in 18 months and the Bachelor’s Degree in three years. 

The accreditation to education bodies is also a top priority for the ICCI management and faculty. 

“We’re maintaining our accreditations and our relationships with agencies such as accrediting councils for independent colleges and schools.

“This will give the students the assurance that the standards are similar to other universities and colleges,” she pointed out. 

Business Instructor and graduate of the ICCI, Anne Villanueva, believes that it is possible to balance work and part-time studies. 

“I inform them at the beginning of the class that I expect the highest level of work. The majority of them do come up to that level,” she said to Cayman Net News during a class session at the college. 

“I was a student before so I know it can be done because I worked and graduated with honours in my undergraduate and graduate programmes and I also worked an 8:00 to 5:00 job.”

Ms Villanueva, a lecturer in Introduction to Business and Management, noted that it is very challenging to balance work, school and family life. 

“It’s challenging for some with children and things in their lives then they have to juggle other responsibilities,” she said.

Ms Villanueva, who holds an MBA and MSc in Business from ICCI, said evening courses are convenient to both the employer and the employee. 
“I think night school is convenient for many because in the day they work. Some organisations don’t give them time off so night school works best for a lot of students,” she said. 

Her recommendation to the college in which she has been a lecturer for the past two years would be the establishment of a student study lounge.
“I would obviously like to see a student study lounge because I know it’s very difficult for students when they don’t have a place to study in flexible hours,” she said. 

Dr Cummings urges residents and international students to contact the college for their educational needs, saying it costs much less studying here than anywhere else. 

paul@caymannetnews.com

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